Feeder for wringers



Nov. 4, 1941. J. w. JENSENv FEEDER FOR WRINGERS 2 sheets-sheet 1 FiledDec. 25, 1937 1N VEN T-OR. Jse/Uz, ZZ). Jezzsezz I/ 4 r ,/W//Z W6ATTORNEY.

Nov. 4, 1941. 1. w. JENSEN 2,261,381

FEEDER FOR WRINGERS Filed Dele. 25, 1957 2 sheets-sheet 2 d I-" 1 El.

1N VENT OR.

Jose/Dh ZZ). Jensen BY f MQ/www ATTORNEY.

Patented Nov. 4, 1941 FEEDER Fon wRINGERs Joseph W. Jensen, Berwyn,Ill., assignor to Electric Household Utilities Corporation, Chicago,

Ill., a corporation of IllinoisV Application December 23, 1937,V SerialNo. 181,306

(Cl. 68'-265) M 6 Claims.

'Ihe present invention relates generally to clothes wringers of thepower driven type, including a pair of cooperating pressure rolls, andreversible drive connections. More particularly, the present inventionis directed to the provision of a safety device and means for feedingthe clothes or other fabrics between the pressure rolls of the wringer.

The danger attendant upon feeding of articles of wearing apparel andother fabrics to the rolls of power driven wringers, such as used inconnection with domestic laundry equipment employed in the home, haslong been recognized and I am cognizant of many attempts that have beenmade to overcome or reduce the possibility of injury inperforming thewringing operation upon clothes. Some of the proposed constructions ofthe prior art, while in certain respects appearing to reduce the hazardattendant upon feeding clothes to the wringer, are of such constructionas to result in greater seriousness of the injury, in the event that thefingers r hand of the operator accidentally pass between the lrolls ofthe wringer.

f In most prior art constructions, the means provided for feeding fabricto the wringer rolls generally consists of a single unit adapted forlocation in connection with the feeding side of Athe wringer. In orderthat such units mayV have practical utility, they generally areremovably mounted on the wringer frame so as to render them capable ofbeing mounted on the opposite side of the wringer when the wringer isoperated inthe reverse direction. The fact that such devices are easilyremovable, for the purpose mentioned, greatly detracts from theirability to adequately solve the problem of possible injury in feeding offabrics to the wringer rolls. Moreover, in most prior art constructions,the device must be removed totally from the wringer in order to permitpassage through said wrnger of certain bulky type pieces of material,lsuch as blankets, in which case the operator does not have properprotection against injury, in a manner as above indicated. Further, byreason of thefact that the device is once removed for special handlingof bulky material by the wringer, or for changing its location on the,wringen there is relatively great likelihood that such device may notbe promptly replaced upon the wringer, or that it may become permanentlydisplaced so that the wringer subsequently will be used without it, andthereby defeat the intended purpose.

One of the primary objects of this invention is to provide a novel andimproved form of feeder device of the character indicated, whichobviates the foregoing difficulties, and which `is vcharacterized by theprovision of two separate feedingv units arranged on opposite sides ofthe wringer, in fixed association therewith, so that at no time is itessential to remove the feeding devices from the wrnger.

Anotherobj-ect of this invention is to provide a novel, simple, andpractical form of manually actuated, mechanical' feeding'device of thecharacter indicated which may be economically manufactured-and embodiedin the original manu- Vfacture of wringer structures, or which may beapplied to'wringers of certain construction now in use in the` field Y Afurther object resides in the provision of a novel construction 'offeeder member which is characterized by the provision of a leading edgeadapted to receive, in overlapping relation, the marginal edge of apiece of fabric to be wrung, while itsl opposite edge is formed toprovide a suitable finger grip to enable theA operator to convenientlyand temporarily .hold the fabric o n the feeding member andsimultaneously serve Vas a grip means by which themember may be movedtoward the'rolls for feeding the fabric therebetween.

Still another object of this invention is to provide improved feedingmeans of the character vindicated, including a feeding member having aleading edge adapted to receive, in overlapping relation, the marginaledge 'of apiece of fabric tobe wrung, and the feeder construction beingsuchV as to cause said marginal edge of the fabric to be firmlycompressed against the moving surface of one of the rolls, by virtue ofwhich it is caused to adhere to said surface of the roll for `feeding itinto the bight of the rolls.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will appear fromthe following description taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a wringer provided with'feedin'g meansconstituting the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of my novel form of feeder member.

Fig. 3is a fragmentary end viewof a wringer provided with my novelfeeder structure.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view, similarto Fig. 3, showing theVmode of connection of the feeder member to the wringer proper.

Fig. 5 is a sectional Viewv through the pivot connection of the feedermember, taken as indicated at line 5 5 in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a detailed perspective view of the stop bracket for the feedermember.

Fig. 7 is a transverse sectional View through the wringer, showing oneof the feeder devices disposed in inoperative position and the otherfeeder device in a position ready to feed a piece of fabric to thepressure rolls.

Fig. 8 is a View similar to Fig. 7, showing the position of the feederat which the fabric is brought into contact with the surface of thelower roll preparatory to feeding into the bight of the rolls.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary enlarged view similar to Fig. 8.

Fig. 10 is a view similar to Fig. 7, showing the position of the twofeeder units during the time that a piece of fabric is passing betweenthe pressure rolls.

The wringer designated at A in the drawings is of a conventionalconstruction, including a pair of superimposed cooperating pressurerolls II and I2 supported in a frame structure I3. Disposed on oppositesides of the frame I3 are feedboards I4 which, as shown in the drawings,have a centrally depressed feeding surface I5 inclining downwardly andoutwardly from the bight of the pressure rolls. Disposed beneath thelower pressure roll I2 is a drainboard I 6 pivotally mounted on ahorizontal axis substantially in vertical alignment with the axes of therolls and which may be understood to be rotatwall of said bracket isprovided with a laterally offset yieldable stop surface 30, adapted tobe engaged by the edge of the adjacent arm 2| of the feeder, fornormally limiting the rearward movement of the feeder to a positionsubstantially as seen in Figs. 3 and 4. It is to be understood, however,that said stop surface is yieldable in a lateral direction by theexertion of a slight pressure on the feeder member in a downwardly andoutwardly direction, permitting said member to swing down and outwardlybeyond the feeding surface I5, to a position such as that indicated forthe feeder member on the opposite side of the wringer; such as disclosedin Figs. 7, 8, and 10, at which position said feeder will not interferein any manner with the free discharge of fabric passing through thewringer when operated in the reverse direction. In order to properlyposition the feeder member 20 in such lower position, the bracket 21 isformed at its lower edge with a transverse stop shoulder or ange 3|which is adapted toV be engaged by the edge of the arm 2I, and thusproperly support and position said feeder member 20, in inactiveposition.

In the normal position for operation, the feeder member 2U assumes aposition as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3, from which position it ismoved toward and away from the pressure rolls. The feeder member properis formed at its rearward edge with a longitudinally extending trough ordepression 28a, which serves as a convenient nable automatically inproper direction in response to direction of drive of the rolls I I yandI2. The means for driving the pressure rolls II and I2 and for actuatingthe drainboard I6 do not comprise any part of the present invention anddetailed disclosure of the construction and operation thereof is deemedunnecessary.

The feeding means comprising the present invention is employed induplicate, one on each side ofthe wringer, as may be seen in thedrawings and the description of the construction and lower ends ofsupporting bars 23, which are attached to the exterior of the ends ofthe feedboard I4 by means of screws 24 which engage in lugs 25 securedto the wringer frame I3, as may be seen in Fig. 5. It is to beunderstood that in the wringer construction of the general type rillustrated, the feedboards I4 are attached to the wringer frame by thescrews 24 to the lugs 25 of said frame and it will, therefore, beapparent as the description proceeds that the feeding device comprisingthe present invention may be readily applied to wringers of the typeillustrated either in the original manufacture thereof, or in the fieldMounted on one of the pivot studs 22 is a stop bracket 2l, asillustrated in perspective in Fig. 6, which includes a vertical wall 2Iaextending in backof the bar 23 and against the face of the frame I3.Said wall is perforated and a spring tang 28 projected forwardly fromthe surface thereof, as seen in Figs. 4 and 6, for purposes ashereinafter will be described. The side ger grip for holdinga piece offabric in place thereon preparatory to feeding it to the pressure rolls,and also simultaneously serves as a convenient finger grip for movingsaid member toward the pressure rolls. The forward edge of said troughZIP", terminates in a rearwardly facing surface 20b which serves as anger stop to preclude the possibility of the fingers of the operatorfrom slipping forwardly beyond the leading edge of the feeder memberwhile moving said member toward the rolls for feeding fabrictherebetween. The bottom of the trough 20a preferably is provided withone or more apertures 2)c to provide drainage for water accumulated inthe trough by dripping of an excess quantity from the fabric that istrained thereover, and said excess water is thus caused to drain throughsaid apertures onto the feedboard I5, returning to the tub. The extremeforward edge of the member 20, which constitutes the leading edge andwhich is designated at 28d, is formed in a manner to constitute a fiatsurface area adapted, when disposed adjacent the periphery of the bottomroll, I2, to lay in a plane substantially tangent to the surface of saidroll. Such construction, it has been found from experimentation, insuresadequate pressure for causing proper adherence of the fabric to themoving surface of said lower roll for conveying the fabric into thebight of the rolls. The leading edge 20d, when formed as abovementioned, precludes any possibility of digging into the surface of theroll, and eliminates danger of tearing or injuring the fabric beingconveyed to the bight of the rolls II and I2, and further, there is notendency for the roll to pull the feeder member into the bight, whichmight damage or deform the feeder and/or the wringer itself. Moreover,by positioning the feeder in a manner as herein disclosed, there is nopossibility of tearing or injuring the fabric due to passage of heavy orbulky fabrics through the rolls, which cause an appreciable amount ofdeflection of said rolls,

lsuch, as mayresultwith prior art constructions having the feederlocated yfor movementl into the bight of the rolls.

y In ythenormal use of my novel feeding'device, the 'feeder member onthe discharge side of the wringer is moved downwardly and outwardly,beyond and below the corresponding feedboard, while the other feedermember is disposed in an operating position as seen in Figs. l and 3.The liquid saturated fabric or clothing, designated at B, is then pickedup and thrown on the feeder member 20 so that a marginal edge of saidfabric overlaps the leading edge 2l)d of the feeder member. Then theoperator may grasp the rearward portion of the feeder member, with thefingers extending downwardly into the trough 20a, for temporarilyholding the fabric in place thereon, and then move the feeder member ina forwardly and upwardly direction to cause the leading edge 2lli tobring the overlapped marginal edge of the fabric into firm pressureengagement with the rotating surface of the lower roll l2. Suchengagement will cause the fabric to adhere to the surface of the lowerroll for feeding the same into the bight of the rolls and initiating thepassage of the fabric between the pressure rolls. The fabric passingthrough the rolls may be of such size, weight, or texture as to tend totemporarily hold the feeder member in a position seen in Fig. 8, atwhich position, the feeder does not in any way interfere with thefeeding of the fabric through the wringer, but normally said memberreturns by the action of gravity to the position seen in Fig. 3. As thefeeder member approaches its upward limit of movement, which isdetermined by contact of the fabric with the roll, one of the arms 2|engages the spring tang 28, of bracket 21, which builds up a smallamount of potential energy for initiating the return movement of thefeeder member upon release of pressure thereon by the operator. It willbe apparent that by virtue of the construction herein disclosed, thefabric or clothes may be thrown upon the feeder member by the use of onehand, which hand may also be used for actuating the feeder member.

Although I have herein shown and described a preferred embodiment of myinvention, manifestly it is capable of substantial modification andre-arrangement of parts for adaption to wringer structures of othertypes, without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. I do not,therefore, wish to be understood as limiting this invention to theprecise embodiment herein disclosed, except as it may be so limited inthe appended claims.

I claim:

1. 'Ihe combination with a clothes wringer, comprising a frame, and apair of cooperating pressure rolls carried on the frame; of feedingmeans including a member having a leading edge adapted to receive, inoverlapping relation, the marginal edge of a piece of fabric to be wrungfor feeding it to said rolls, said member being pivotally mounted on ahorizontal axis, below said rolls, for movement toward and away fromsaid rolls, and yielding stop means for normally limiting rearwardmovement of the member away from the rolls.

2. The combination with a clothes wringer, comprising a frame, a pair ofcooperating pressure rolls carried on the frame, and a feedboardconnected to the frame; of feeding means including a longitudinallyextending member having a leading edge adapted to receive, inoverlappingrelation, the marginal edge of a piece Vof .away from saidrolls, over and out of contact with said feedboard, yielding stop meansfor normally limiting rearward movement of the member away from therolls, and a fixed stop, adapted when said member is moved downwardlybeyond the yielding stop means to a position beyond the outer edge ofthe feedboard, for denitely limiting further downward movement of saidmember.

3. The combination with a clothes wringer. comprising a frame,'a pair ofcooperating pressure rolls carried on the frame, and a feedboardconnected to the frame; of feeding means including a longitudinallyextending member having a leading edge adapted to receive, inoverlapping relation, the marginal edge of a piece of fabric to be wrungfor feeding it to said rolls, said member being pivotally mounted on ahorizontal axis, below said rolls, for movement toward and away fromsaid rolls, over and out of contact with the feedboard, the leading edgebeing so positioned relative to one of the rolls that the forwardmovement of the member is arrested by one of the rolls and the leadingedge of said member serves to exert rm pressure on said edge of thefabric against the surface of said one roll, for causing feeding of saidfabric between the rolls, yielding stop means for normally limitingrearward movement of the member away from the rolls, and a fixed stop,adapted when said member is moved downwardly beyond the yielding stopmeans to a position beyond the outer edge of the feedboard, fordefinitely limiting further downward movement of said member.

4. The combination with a clothes wringer, comprising a frame, and apair of cooperating pressure rolls carried on the frame; of feedingmeans including a longitudinally extending member having a leading edgeadapted to receive, in overlapping relation, the marginal edge of apiece of fabric to be wrung for feeding said fabric to the rolls, saidmember being pivotally mounted on a horizontal axis for movement towardand away from said rolls, the rearward portion of said member beingformed with a depression to constitute a finger grip for holding thefabric on said member and for moving it toward the rolls.

5. 'Ihe combination with a clothes wringer, comprising a frame, and apair of cooperating pressure rolls carried on the frame; of feedingmeans including a longitudinally extending member having a leading edgeadapted to receive, in overlapping relation, the marginal edge of apiece of fabric to be wrung for feeding said fabric to the rolls, saidmember being pivotally mounted on a horizontal axis for movement towardand away from said rolls, the rearward portion of said member beingformed with a depression to constitute a finger grip for holding thefabric on said member and for moving it toward the rolls, said depressedportion being apertured to provide for discharge of liquid dripping fromsaid fabric.

6. The combination with a clothes wringer, comprising a frame, and apair of cooperating pressure rolls carried on the frame; of feedingmeans including a longitudinally extending member having a leading edgeadapted to receive, in overlapping relation, the marginal edge of apiece of fabric to be wrung for feeding said yfabric to the rolls, saidmember being pivotally mounted on a horizontal axis for movement towardand away from said rolls, the rearward portion of said member beingformed with a longitudinally extending trough to constitute a fingergrip for holding the fabric on said member

